Willson Contreras not thanking an ump may have gotten a Cubs coach ejected

Being an umpire is a thankless job, but we didn’t realize forgetting to thank an umpire would lead to an ejection. According to Chicago Cubs catcher Willson Contreras, that’s precisely what happened during Saturday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds.

What led to Cubs coach Brandon Hyde’s ejection?

During his fourth-inning at-bat, Cubs catcher Willson Contreras asked Gibson for time. After it was granted, Contreras and Gibson had a brief exchange. Contreras then looked at the Cubs’ dugout. Before he could get back into the box — and before manager Joe Maddon could make it out to home plate — Gibson pointed to the dugout and ejected Hyde from the contest.

Following the game, Contreras explained Gibson got mad because Contreras didn’t thank him for granting time.

This is what Willson Contreras said when asked about what happened when he was at the plate and bench coach Brandon Hyde got tossed. Apparently the ump wasn't pleased with Willson for not thanking him when he granted him timeout… pic.twitter.com/5qu8eKlgQx

Did the ump make the right call?

It’s always dangerous to check Twitter, but the overwhelming fan response is that Gibson overreacted. The general consensus is that there was no need for him to confront Contreras over not being thanked. At worst, what Contreras did was rude, and we’re not sure being rude should lead to an ejection.

Cameras didn’t pick up what Hyde said to the ump, but we imagine it was something that would get most coaches ejected from a game. With that said, it’s hard to justify the ejection. Gibson was the one who escalated the situation. If he had just brushed it off, none of this would have happened.

What did the ump do to Contreras?

Contreras handled the situation pretty well. He immediately looked toward his dugout because he knew he would get kicked out of the game if he said anything. The team lost its bench coach as a result, but they were able to keep their starting catcher.